On Saturday, Mayor Steinberg will join representatives from the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development (GO-Biz) and CyberCalifornia to support the 2017 “Sacramento Mayor’s Cyber Cup,” a cyber security competition for high school students. The event will be hosted at Sacramento City College from 12:30p.m. – 4:00p.m.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – April 11, 2017

Sacramento City College Hosts “Mayor’s Cyber Cup” Competition

Challenge designed to proactively address the global cybersecurity skills gap

Sacramento, Calif -On Saturday, Mayor Steinberg will join representatives from the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development (GO-Biz) and CyberCalifornia to support the 2017 “Sacramento Mayor’s Cyber Cup,” a cyber security competition for high school students. The event will be hosted at Sacramento City College from 12:30p.m. – 4:00p.m.
“Sacramento is developing a 21st century high-wage economy and we want our kids to be first in line for those jobs,” said Mayor Darrell Steinberg. “This competition highlights the exceptional talent of our high school students and prepares them to fill a growing void in an industry that is hungry for smart, skilled, and savvy people to protect the integrity of the cyber world.”

During the competition, students will compete in timed cybersecurity challenges designed to replicate the many different threats that cybersecurity professionals must confront, from attacks on critical infrastructure to attempted breaches of consumer data on internet-connected devices. These cybersecurity competitions expand access to STEM education and career pathways, while simultaneously helping businesses address gaps in cybersecurity skills.

“We are thrilled to see businesses, educational institutions, and government partners promoting cybersecurity as a valuable career pathway for California students," said GO-Biz Director, Panorea Avdis. “The Sacramento Mayor’s Cyber Cup will help GO-Biz catalyze a statewide cybersecurity education campaign and we look forward to seeing the winning teams from Sacramento compete at the statewide competition in June."

The Sacramento Mayor’s Cyber Cup is part of a statewide cybersecurity education campaign organized through the CyberCalifornia coalition. CyberCalifornia is a collection of businesses, state and local government organizations, and educational partners dedicated to reinforcing California’s leadership position in cybersecurity. This educational campaign will culminate with the statewide championship round, hosted by GO-Biz and taking place on June 24 and 25 at the new California Cyber Training Complex in San Luis Obispo.

The top two teams from the Sacramento Mayor’s Cyber Cup will gain automatic entry to the statewide championship, where they will compete on behalf of the Sacramento region. During this championship round, students will participate in both a novel “digital forensics” competition and a competition that replicates the experience of managing the network of a small company.